Watch: 'Ted Lasso' Star Billy Harris Opens Up about his Gay Character

"Ted Lasso" star Billy Harris offered his thoughts about playing Colin Hughes, a gay soccer player whose sexuality became a major plot point in the acclaimed show's current third season.

The British actor spoke with The Wrap at an event for the show, in which the titular American football coach, played by Jason Sudeikis, relocates to England to train soccer club Welsh AFC despite knowing nothing about soccer.

"From Series 1 to Series 3, now you're, seeing the real side of him," Harris said about his character, referencing the long-gestating gay storyline. "I think there's something that he's using and I think it could be comedy – sometimes he's been the butt of the jokes and stuff like that. I think that because he wasn't living his true self – and still in the locker room, he isn't – when I saw how this storyline was going, it kind of all made sense to me, and I'm like, 'Oh, this poor boy.'"

Added Harris: "As he said, he's living two lives."

As previously reported, the show's current season revealed that Colin is in a relationship with another man named Michael (Sam Liu). The season's third episode opens with the two sharing a snog and anticipating sex after Michael returns from a trip he's about to embark on.

"As the episode unfolds," GQ detailed in an article about the storyline, "Colin and Michael navigate the complexities of maintaining a private relationship in the public sphere," including a moment during a team dinner gathering when "Colin introduces Michael as his mate and, quote, 'the world's greatest wingman.'"

But the heterosexual facade is threatened when a gay journalist – Trent Crimm, played by James Lance – spots the two stealing a kiss, setting up a dramatic new tangent for the series to explore.

In a subsequent episode, Crimm and Colin talk about being gay. "What was so beautiful about that scene is you had an older gay guy just talking to a younger gay guy who is confused and doesn't, you know, feel like he can merge the two lives together," Harris told The Wrap.

"It's just someone to listen," Harris went on to say, "and in the real world, I think we can do a lot of that, as well."

Co-creator Brendan Hunt, who also plays Coach Beard, told Radio Times recently that a gay player was always going to be part of the show. "Before Season 2, it was like, 'OK, well, should we cast that someone?'" he recounted.

"And then we thought, 'Oh no, actually, it'll be better if that person's already on the team and we're not acknowledging it and they're hiding it so well, but there's been no hint of it so far.' That helps demonstrate what this person is going through."

In his comments to The Wrap, Harris confirmed that glimmers of his character's gay arc were deliberately dropped in the show's second season. "I read the script and I saw that he was going to therapy," Harris said of a particular episode.

Then, he recalled, there was a moment when Colin "mentioned the Grindr app. There was a huge response from fans on Twitter about that, and what was great is the fans were seeing themselves represented."

The long lead-in and sudden reveal make for dramatic storytelling but also invite empathy.

"When people go back and watch the show now after this revelation, they'll be like, 'Wow, he was hiding that for so long. Colin has to go that long not being who he is.' I think that helps tell the story better," Hunt said.

To watch Billy Harris' interview with The Wrap, follow this link.